September 2015

September 30, 2015

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has updated air pollution standards for toxic air emissions from petroleum refineries.

Exposure to toxic air pollutants, such as benzene, can cause respiratory problems and other serious health issues and can increase the risk of developing cancer.

The rule requires fenceline monitoring, for the first time, to better protect nearby communities. It also strengthens emission controls for flares, pressure relief devices, storage tanks, and some processing operations that will reduce thousands of tons of hazardous air pollutants.

September 29, 2015

When I was growing up in the apple growing communities of Central Washington, I was exposed to pesticides when I worked in the orchard and even when I was walking home from school.

My father, a farmer, died of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, which is linked to pesticide exposure. I learned about the link between this kind of cancer and pesticides when I heard a story on National Public Radio. It was about the children of farmworkers, who worked with their parents in the fields. They were experiencing high rates of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

In my opinion, it’s really important to protect people from pesticide exposure.

It’s been 20 years since the U.S. Environmental has updated its pesticide safety standards for farmworkers.

Tom Sightings at Sightings Over Sixty reminisces about the 1990s, which as he realizes in “A Man of the 1990s,” were only just around the corner, as far as the past goes. As a man of the 1990s, Sightings says he’s tuned into the music and movies of the era, and the politicians, too.

September 25, 2015

Former Peanut Corp. of America owner Stewart Parnell and his co-defendants were sentenced Monday for fraud, conspiracy, obstruction of justice, and other charges in the huge 2008 Salmonella outbreak linked to PCA’s products.

Parnell received a 28-year sentence and his brother and food broker Michael Parnell was given a 20-year sentence. Mary Wilkerson, the plant’s quality assurance manager, received five years.

The salmonella outbreak in 2008 was traced back to peanut butter paste manufactured by PCA. Nine people died and were 714 sickened in 46 states. It caused one of the largest food recalls in American history and was the deadliest salmonella outbreak in recent years.

September 23, 2015

Thirty million Americans took money out of their retirement savings for an emergency during the past year, according to a Bankrate.com report. The report also found that 21 million Americans aren’t saving for retirement at all.

Millennials were the least likely to withdraw their retirement funds early, with only 8 percent doing so over the past 12 months. They’re also the age group with an improved overall financial situation over the past year; 40 percent say they’re better off while 11 percent say they’re doing worse.

For 50-64 year-olds, 26 percent say their financial situation has deteriorated over the past year – more than any other age group – and 17 percent recently took money out of their retirement savings to pay for an emergency.

September 22, 2015

Most people will experience at least one diagnostic error – an inaccurate or delayed diagnosis – in their lifetime, sometimes with devastating consequences, according to a report from the Institute of Medicine of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.

Although getting the right diagnosis is key in health care, efforts to improve diagnosis and reduce diagnostic errors have been limited, the committee that conducted the study and wrote the report found.

Improving diagnosis is complicated, because it’s a collaborative and inexact process that can take place in different health care settings, the report said.

Thousands of organizations across the country are celebrating by registering tens of thousands of new voters.

“Today is an important day for all of us to help voters get ready to head to the polls to weigh in on the issues that matter most to them,” Elisabeth MacNamara , president, U.S. League of Women Voters, said in an email. “2015 may not be a presidential election year, but there are thousands of important offices at stake across the country on November 3 – not to mention the upcoming presidential primaries in early 2016.”